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Downtown Portland Protest Expected To Disrupt Traffic

Anyone traveling in or around downtown Portland should expect traffic and Trimet disruptions Thursday afternoon, police said ahead of a planned protest by the movement “Occupy Portland.”

Organizers said they are frustrated with corporate greed and a lack of government accountability.

“We will gather in solidarity with the ongoing protest in New York City, ‘Occupy Wall Street,’ and the growing number of cities whose people will no longer sit back watching corporate and special interests run their government,” said a statement posted on the group’s Web site.

Starting at 12 p.m. Thursday, protesters assembled at several downtown and waterfront locations.

“We are citizens of the United States, and this country is ours. We will take it back… our political system has been altered drastically from its intended and proper function,” read another statement on the group’s site.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams released a statement Thursday mornng about the protest. Earlier, he told OPB that the city was working with protesters to ensure a smooth and peaceful event.

Organizers around the country have been using social media to plan and disseminate information about the protests. In Portland, organizers were using the “hash tags” #occupyportland and #occupypdx on Twitter.